Guest Cerebus Report post Posted June 28, 2003 Dragon fulfills a lifelong dream by Brian Solomon NEW YORK — Ultimo Dragon, the greatest international competitor to hit WWE in quite some time, wowed the thousands on hand at Madison Square Garden for SmackDown! with a thrilling victory over Shannon Moore. Dragon’s debut was highly anticipated. After years competing around the world and developing a reputation as one of the best in the game, WWE was the one place he had never appeared. And on top of that, Madison Square Garden — an arena he had dreamed of competing in since childhood — was the site of his first WWE match. “I wrestled in the most important arenas in the world,” he said backstage immediately after the match. “I wrestled in the Tokyo Dome, the Sun Palace, all the most famous arenas, except Madison Square Garden.” American wrestling has long been a subject of great interest in Japan, and many fans from the Far East grew up hearing about the legendary Madison Square Garden and all the great matches that have taken place there. Dragon was eager to be a part of that history, and it played a big part in his decision to return to action, despite calling it quits for several years due to nerve damage in his arm that at one point seemed to be career-ending. The vibe backstage was one of intrigue, as Superstars congregated around the monitors to watch Dragon’s match. Meanwhile, in the arena, the fans that had been demanding Dragon’s debut since the beginning of the night erupted in adulation at his entrance. And they certainly weren’t disappointed with the bout, as Ultimo Dragon executed some of his classic maneuvers, such as the Asai moonsault, as well as unveiling a devastating finishing move. Nevertheless, ever the perfectionist, Dragon seemed to feel as if he could have done better. His mood after the match was somber, and instead of soaking in the glory of the long-awaited moment, he spoke with cruiserweight agent Dean Malenko about what he might have done differently. While it’s hard not to admire the incredibly high standards he apparently set for himself, there are few that would dispute that his debut was anything short of electric. “It was not a bad match. But very hard for me,” the Dragon maintained, referencing the fact that he hasn’t wrestled regularly for some time. His self-critique aside, Ultimo Dragon immediately placed the match among the highlights of his career. And for someone with this man’s credentials, that’s certainly saying something. Since this is from WWE.com it puts a positive spin on the fact that this childhood-dream match was a less than 5 minute match with Shannon Moore that wasn't even the main event. No, my friends, that honor went to our lovely 3 v 3 tag match that lasted more than 15 minutes! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest AndrewTS Report post Posted June 28, 2003 That's just bitching for the sake of bitching, friend. Who debuts in the main event with 10 minutes of ring time? I thought it went off rather well. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest The Mighty Damaramu Report post Posted June 28, 2003 I bet he isn't even on SD! this week........oh wait......they won't be treating him like Brian Kendrick. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DrVenkman PhD 0 Report post Posted June 28, 2003 That's just bitching for the sake of bitching, friend. Because God knows THAT doesn't happen often in the IWC. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest Smell the ratings!!! Report post Posted June 29, 2003 Maybe someday if I train hard enough and never give up, I too can wrestle Shannon Moore for 4 minutes. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
syxx2001 0 Report post Posted June 29, 2003 Or look like Triple H. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Internet Warfare 0 Report post Posted June 29, 2003 Hey, the 6 man tag was a good main event! So that's what Deano is doing nowadays... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
